Stitches, Swords, and Staffs
by Cass Edes
Summary: Kel goes to visit Lalasa at her new shop, only to meet her new business partner.


**A/N: Special birthday fic for booksandhotchocolate! I hope you like it. I was afraid I might make one of them out of character since it's been awhile since I read, but I think it turned out okay. **

Kel entered Lalasa's new shop uncertainly, looking around for her friend. The knight knew the new premises were much larger than her former maid's previous shop, now that she'd formed a partnership with a mage that specialized in stitchwork.

The new shop was bright and airy, much larger than it seemed from the outside, with finished dresses displayed near the front and the work area behind. Workers bustled around, carrying bolts of fabric and baskets of thread in all colors and textures, calling instructions and acknowledgements to each other. In the middle of it all sat a small-statured woman who carried an unmistakable air of authority. She was sitting at a worktable facing the door, head bent over some incredibly complex embroidery on a bodice.

As Kel hesitantly approached, she saw that the woman had not one, but three needles working, two of them flashing through, around, and under the dress as quickly as the one held between slender fingers on a tiny hand. Kel stopped in front of the table, a bit hypnotized by the dance of thread.

Suddenly, the dance ended and Kel shook her head, remembering why she was there. She looked from the needles to the lady holding them, noting bright blue eyes and a tiny, delicate nose. "Excuse me, are you Sandry? I'm Lady Knight Keladry of Mindelan."

The woman frowned and sat up straighter. "My name is Lady Sandrilene fa Toren, yes. May I help you?"

"I'm sorry, Lady Sandrilene, I was looking for Lalasa... Is she here?" Kel still wasn't comfortable in this shop, with its ribbons and lace, although Lady Sandrilene obviously was. "If she's not, I can come back later."

The noble immediately brightened. "Oh, you're Lalasa's Kel! Call me Sandry. She talks all about you, you know. She was off to lunch with a-friend, but she should be back any minute." Setting aside her embroidery, she rose and beckoned for the taller woman to follow her.

She led Kel to a small sitting room decorated cozily with small couches and tables. "This is where she and I work after hours," she explained to the bemused knight. "It's more comfortable here. The outside door there is where she'll come in, so we can sit here and wait for a bit. Lalasa says that you've been managing a town up north? Tell me, what kind of plant life is up there? I'll have to remember to tell Briar..."

The two chatted amiably for another half hour or so until the sounds of a key in the outdoor lock drew their attention. The door opened to reveal the beaming Lalasa with a woman Kel didn't know. The dark-skinned woman had a large staff looped onto her belt and looked like she knew how to use it, though at the moment the stranger's attention was focused on juggling the several packages she carried. Lalasa hurried inside and began taking the parcels and putting them on a table by the door. She turned and saw Sandry and Kel. "Hello, Kel! I haven't seen you in ages, were you here for a new dress or just to chat? I hope you haven't waited too long. Sandry, we found the greatest little shop on the way back from lunch that had some lovely dyes from the Copper Isles. I made Daja stop so we could look and I brought some here so we can start working with it. But that's enough business for now. Kel, may I introduce you to Daja Kisubo? She's one of Sandry's closest friends and she's been living with us over the shop. She has a smithy across the street."

Kel shook Daja's hand, noting the strength in the grip and, startled, the cool feeling of metal. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Daja Kisubo," she said, smiling.

"And it's wonderful to meet you, Kel. I've heard so much about you. Is it true you're the second Lady Knight in the past five hundred years?" Her brown eyes were alight with curiosity.

"It is. Took a lot of hard work to get there, too. I'll have to tell you about it sometime. Your staff is beautiful. Do the carvings on it have meaning?"

"Yes." Daja took the staff from her belt and twirled it to show one of the endcaps, made from the same copper that covered one hand. "They tell my life story. It's one of my people's customs. Every Trader carries a staff, both to show their identity and to protect themselves."

"So you can use it, too? We should spar sometime-one of my best weapons is a pole arm." Kel could use a new partner. With luck this stranger would have some new moves, too.

"I'd love to."

The four women sat in the solar for the next few hours, talking and laughing, as Kel got to know Lalasa's new friends that were responsible for bringing the once-shy girl even further from her shell.

_Maybe becoming a knight wasn't the only way to become a warrior after all, _Kel mused later that night._ All the same, I'm glad it's the path I chose._


End file.
